Category Archives: Thoughts on the World
I was literally just about to get into bed in my hotel in Liverpool last night, when the air was rent with loud explosions. Fortunately nothing sinister – just fireworks giving a cruise ship a good send-off on her voyage. My hotel room was very well positioned to watch the show, with the fireworks and the ship visible through Liverpool’s "Big Wheel".
I did have my little Canon S120 in my bag, and couldn’t resist trying to capture the scene. I had a minor panic as I ran round the hotel room and rummaged through my bag trying to find something on which to rest the camera – good fireworks photos need exposures of 10s or longer. In the end I think this one was taken with the camera propped up on the TV remote control. Not ideal, but a reasonable success given the circumstances…
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I’m frustrated. I’ve just read a couple of good, if somewhat repetitive, design pattern books: one on SOA design with a resolutely platform-neutral stance, and another on architecting for the cloud, with a Microsoft Azure bent but which struck an Continue reading →
I read a lot using the Kindle applications for Android and PC. While there’s a lot which is good about that process there are a number of things which really bug me. Some of these look incredibly simple to resolve, Continue reading →
LinkedIn is full of useful little articles about mistakes not to make in the world of work. However here’s one I’ve never seen mentioned. I’ve just had a kick-off meeting with a new client. In order to appear friendly and Continue reading →
Wednesday, June 3, 2015 in
Thoughts on the World
My penultimate purchase of music on vinyl was in 1989. I think, if memory at this distance serves, it was Running in the Family by Level 42. In the intervening 26 years I have felt very limited need to use Continue reading →
Saturday, May 30, 2015 in
Thoughts on the World
We’ve just finished our 30th anniversary viewing of Edge of Darkness. I must now have seen the series at least 10 times, but in this case familiarity breeds respect. Like the best Shakespeare play or Verdi opera the series rewards Continue reading →
My MacBook Pro is, ironically, the best portable PC I’ve owned. The Big Old Alien is slightly faster and more powerful, but you’d never use the word "portable" about it without gritted teeth, and since the PC world went to Continue reading →
It has been said that the ideal car for Darth Vader would be an original Mercedes CLS, in black. I think I have discovered the ideal car for Dr. Henry Jekyll, and Mr. Hyde! Mercedes themselves acknowledge the dual personality Continue reading →
Friday, May 15, 2015 in
Thoughts on the World
Great excitement chez nous last night. The security lights went on and we spotted not one but two hedgehogs snuffling around in the courtyard. Fortunately they stayed round long enough to get a few photos. The security light provided good Continue reading →
We visit a lot of photography exhibitions. The majority are inspiring or thought-provoking, and well worth the effort of the photographers, the presenters, and the attendees. Along the way there has been the odd disappointment: sometimes we just don’t connect Continue reading →
Apologies, my first blog post of the New Year really should have wished you all the very best for 2015. Please accept this as a pseudo-first post, with said wishes. I also just wanted to post this shot from yesterday. Continue reading →
Here’s a thing. Do a search for a restaurant, theatre or somewhere else you’d like to visit, using Google Chrome. Get a map using Google Maps, in Google Chrome. Print out a copy for reference – blank page! Copy the Continue reading →
Monday, December 29, 2014 in
Thoughts on the World
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